Being Valentine

"When I found the one my heart loves, I held him and would not let him go..." (Song of Songs 3:4) 

 Another Valentine's Day is past.  No doubt the usual enormous quantity of cards, flowers and chocolates was bought and exchanged.  It is said that only Christmas exceeds Valentine's Day in the number of greeting cards sent. 

The true identity of Saint Valentine is not known.  One legend holds that he was a kindly priest of the third century who continued to perform marriages despite an imperial ban.  It seems that the Roman Emperor Claudius was upset at the number of men who refused to serve in his army because of their desire to stay home with their wives, so he outlawed marriage.  And Fr. Valentine was beheaded for his trouble.  Another tale tells of a medieval monk named Valentine who carried messages back and forth between men in prison and their loved ones.  Many stories attach to this special day, but the fact is we don't know about St. Valentine. 

But we know about love.  We know how wonderful it is - and sometimes how disappointing.  We know how naturally it comes to us - and how difficult it can often be.  We know much we want it - and what risks it may carry.  I asked a friend who had spent his career as a general surgeon what the most difficult kind of surgery had been for him.  "Fixing hearts," he said, "because I know the cost of failure."  He could as well have been describing love. 

There is risk in giving love and risk in receiving it.  Often the kids in orphanages where I've shared in ministry stand back when we arrive.  They have had their hearts broken before, being abandoned by those they loved, and they don't know if they want to go there again.  One can hear the fear in their voices when they ask if we're coming back to see them again, can feel it in the tightness of that last hug as we board our bus to leave.  Yet love we must.  It's a risk we have to take for life to be healthy and full.  The title alone of psychologist Smiley Blanton's book gives the whole picture: "Love or Perish."

So love.  Love God with all your heart.  Take the chance on what that might mean for you.  Love your neighbour - and your spouse and your parents and your kids - in the same measure as you do yourself.  Valentine's Day is past, but today is still a time, as King Solomon said, to hold them and not let them go..

By Dr. Michael Halleen

Haiti Survivor Wismond Exantus

Wednesday 13th January will be a day that the world will never forget ... One of those days that you and I will remember what we were doing and where we were, when we heard the news of the Haiti 7.0 Richter Scale Earthquake...
 
I, like many have sat in front of the television and watched as men and women from all around the world have rallied and risen to the challenge to help in the rescue - many have contributed financially - many have given of their time and expertise - and many prayers have been said!
 
I have watched as the "Rapid Response Teams" from the different nations with their different languages have all worked together with a common cause and one purpose - "To rescue those who are lost!"
 
The scale of the disaster grows daily - people coming to terms with their loss – 600,000 people have been made homeless according to some reports that I have read.
 
One news report shows a man being rescued after 11 days of being buried beneath rubble... Wismond Exantus is extricated from the rubble and taken to the hospital to be checked over - when interviewed this was his story!
 
Wismond Exantus
- Whilst I was buried I prayed! - "God if you rescue me from this, I will be your servant forever..."
 
- How did you pass the time? - "I prayed and recited Psalms..."
 
- When asked what will be the first thing you will do when you are discharged from this hospital? - "I will find a church to give thanks to God…"
 
During this day let's remember the advice from Wismond Exantus ...
 
- We have all been rescued from sin and the appropriate response is a life long service to God ... don't give up!
 
- When we feel things getting on top of us ... keep praying and keep worshipping ... it pays to praise!
 
- Give thanks ... count your blessings!
 
Galatians 5:1 "It was for freedom that Christ has set us free"
 
Live this day the way God intends you to live...

Bridges

When anything in life brings pain,
Or anyone upsets my day,
If I can build a bridge to God
His peace will chase my fears away.
 
When problems leave me tense, unstrung,
And peace of mind cannot be found,
If I can build a bridge of faith,
He'll lift me up to higher ground.
 
If I can build a bridge of trust
To span the tensions of my day,
God's grace and understanding love
Will be a light upon my way.
 
No difficulty large or small,
Can come between my Lord and me
If I can build a bridge of prayer
To feel His presence constantly.
 
(Author Unknown)

A Short Thought

Say to yourself, "I am loved by God more than I can either conceive or understand."  Let this fill all your soul and all your prayers and never leave you.  You will soon see that this is the way to find God.
 
(Henri De Tourville)

Courage

I used to think courageous people were those of the type that would jump into icy water and save someone from drowning and of course those people are courageous. However, that doesn't mean courage isn't accessible to "non water" people. For those who face challenges of the simple stuff of life (all of us), then courage helps us deal with whatever life throws at us, it aids in keeping an even keel through things and equips us with fortitude to work through failure. Realising that sickness, discouragement and loss comes in all shapes and sizes I am coming to understand that our lives get smaller or larger in direct proportion to our courage.

Courage is not the absence of fear; it is doing what is right in spite of fear. Don't think that if you have fear, courage has somehow evaded you. Look fear in the face and focus on what is right, and then DO WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO - AFRAID IF NECESSARY. That is what courage is. John Wayne said, "Courage is being scared to death—and saddling up anyway."

General George Patton said, "If we take the generally accepted definition of bravery as a quality which knows not fear, I have never seen a brave man. All men are frightened. The more intelligent they are, the more they are frightened. The courageous man is the man who forces himself, in spite of his fear, to carry on."

People of faith have an advantage because 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us, "God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." How comforting and liberating is that?

My prayer for every one of us is that we live our lives with courage. 

Ken Williamson
(AoG National Leadership Team)

Harvesters of Signs

(God) took (Abraham) outside and said, "Look up at the heavens and count the stars-if indeed you can count them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring be." (Genesis 15:5) 

God had promised Abraham and Sarah that they would be founders of a great nation and a blessing to the earth.  They had kept their part of the bargain and gone where God told them to go.  They had trusted and believed.  But the years had piled up like sand in the desert and no child had been born to them.  True, God had brought them into a new land as promised, but what good was that if there was no one to leave it to? 

 

The story of Sarah and Abraham is a story of barrenness - not only of their inability to have children, but also of a world in which our prayers go unanswered, our deepest hopes remain unborn.  As for Abraham, so also for us the time comes when we want action.  Abraham, speaking for us all, says to God, in essence, "The land is fine, Lord, but what about the child you promised?" 

We who worship the God of Abraham and Sarah and believe that the promised blessing is also for us feel the urgency in his question.  We have asked it from the depths of our hearts too.  Why am I unable to find a meaningful job?  Where is the good health for which I've prayed?  Will there ever be someone to love me?  How long must we live in fear of terrorism? 

As Abraham's question cut through the night air, God gave him a sign.  He took him outdoors, beneath a sky powdered with stars, and said again that he and Sarah would have descendants to outnumber the lights of heaven.  It was not an explanation but simply a reiteration of the promise.  It meant Don't give up!  Keep the faith!  I'm still around! 

Faith is a gift, something we receive rather than achieve.  Some receive it in great measure, others less so.  But all of us, like Abraham, are called to be observers of signs.  When he grew tired of waiting, he saw in the stars something that helped him persevere.  Our signs may be more subtle - a kind word, a gentle hand, a beautiful thing that reminds us of the Creator's love.  Harvest those signs.  Share them.  Each one, great or small, helps us in the long and difficult wait for the fulfillment of God's promises.

(Dr. Michael A. Halleen)

God Can

When you feel unlovable, unworthy and unclean, when you think that no one can heal you:
Remember, Friend, God Can.

When you think that you are unforgivable for your guilt and your shame:
Remember, Friend, God Can.

When you think that all is hidden and no one can see within:
Remember, Friend, God Can.

And when you have reached the bottom and you think that no one can hear:
Remember, my dear Friend,God Can.

And when you think that no one can love the real person deep inside of you:
Remember, my dear Friend, God Does.
 
(author unknown)
 



 

 
  But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. 
 
  James 3:17
  The King James Version 
 
(Shared by Sarah from China)
 



 
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